Entry into the labor market is a moment as relevant as it is complex; This moment in which you have to find a job without having previous experience is characterized by the emergence of a large number of doubts, uncertainties and fears of all kinds. And to this we must add a context in which fairly rapid economic, social and technological changes occur and competitiveness prevails.
Although at first it may be an arduous and complex process for some people, the truth is that There are some basic competencies that we must take into account and that most employers look for when hiring new employees A good part of them are what is known as “soft skills”: skills that can be learned and internalized, but not from simple memorization of syllabi or from formal attendance at classes, but through a combination of theoretical and practical learning.
It may be that we have some of these skills incorporated into our daily lives; however, Others may need to be worked on or trained in order to increase their chances of being hired by a company
What are the skills that must be developed to find a first job?
Below we present a summary of the main skills that we must have and enhance to find a first job more easily.
1. Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence is the ability that human beings have to understand emotions and manage the expression of emotional states to communicate successfully with the people around us and to avoid falling into self-sabotaging dynamics. It helps us recognize our own and other people’s emotions and modulate them, adapting in real time to the situation in which we find ourselves
It is a skill that most people develop, especially throughout our childhood and adolescence, but that we can continue to train, and it is considered one of the main “soft skills” that most people require. companies on their employees.
Emotional intelligence allows us to identify at all times the needs of both colleagues and superiors and also helps us to intelligibly transmit information about the tasks to be carried out, the company, or our own needs of all kinds.
2. Teamwork
Teamwork is another of the most in-demand “soft skills” in the current labor market, since in the business world more and more projects are carried out in groups or teams.
The main sub-competences of teamwork that a prepared employee must have are making correct decisions taking into account that achieving team goals is a cooperative process assertiveness or respectful communication of one’s own criteria, active listening, solving complex problems and communication skills.
All of these skills together are necessary to work diligently in a team and make up the range of competencies of a competent employee.
3. Mental flexibility
Flexibility is the employee’s ability to adapt to new or adverse situations by going beyond the mental schemes that we usually use in a given context, in this case with the aim of connecting with the way of thinking of others. Is something very useful both in jobs where you have to lead, and in jobs facing the public because clients and consumers tend to think about what we offer them in a very different way than we do, who spend several hours a week thinking about it and are also emotionally involved in our productivity goals.
This flexibility can be both hourly and show the ability to adopt new ways of working, both individually or as a team, in the face of novel, critical or problematic situations.
4. Goal orientation
Know how to understand what the short, medium and long term goals are It is essential to connect with a job and achieve stability in it or even have the possibility of climbing within a company. Companies tend to discard profiles that are not clear about what they want or what is expected of them.
Resilience is a competence that is also part of soft skills and is defined as the ability to adapt to adverse situations by learning from what happened , and above all about mistakes, but without letting guilt paralyze us. It helps to come out stronger in the face of bad experiences or critical situations.
Resilient people learn from everything that happens to them in life, including the bad, instead of trying not to think about it or obsessing over those memories and entering into a dynamic of self-hatred. That is why it is so important to have this competence both in the workplace and in the personal sphere.
6. Digital communication
Digital communication is essential in most companies and organizations of all types. It includes both the ability to express oneself in a synthetic and orderly manner through speech and writing, on the one hand, and the ability to use new technologies to do so, on the other. It is one of the most visible characteristics in an application through a resume and motivation letter.
That is why an applicant for any job must have mastery of tools such as messaging systems on digital platforms of all types. It consists of understanding the logic in which ICTs operate, at least at a basic level, knowing how to predict and understand the way most computer program interfaces operate even if we have little or no experience with those specific ones.
In addition to that, it is worth keeping in mind that many recruiters carry out their searches on social networks and other types of platforms, identifying profiles that are capable of communicating their ideas effectively in the digital medium.
Commitment to the workplace and the company we work with is also essential in any self-respecting worker, and this is based on concentration when working, attention, being productive and being motivated.
It’s based on the ability to work honestly and knowing how to transmit that honesty oriented towards medium and long-term goals that benefit both us and the company. And it is from this competence that organizations have incentives to invest time and resources in the internal training of their staff, to help them take advantage of their talents and interests and promote by climbing positions.
Commitment also means adhering from day one to the corporate interests or objectives of our company and being loyal to it at all times, committing to giving the best performance at all times in the workplace.
8. Autonomous learning
Finally, another of the key skills necessary to find your first job is showing a capacity for constant and independent learning.
This means show ourselves available to learn new knowledge and train ourselves in various areas of knowledge, whether in the field of technology, programming or in the field of formal learning.
Do you want to know soft skills from the perspective of candidates and companies?
If you want to understand soft skills and their implications in jobs while you specialize professionally in Human Resources, you may be interested in the Own University Master’s Degree in Talent Selection and Management offered by the University of Malaga. It is a one-year training program that consists of three main blocks: Talent Selection; Training, Personal and Organizational Development; and Internships, which can be carried out in several of the most important companies that operate in Spanish territory. If you want to know more, access this page.
